Chief Lanier ramps up effort to find illegal dirt bike, ATV riders
WASHINGTON - Police in Washington, D.C., are cracking down on illegal riders of ATVs and dirt bikes in the city streets in an effort to curb a growing problem responsible for police officer injuries and other problems, such as blocking an ambulance carrying a sick child.
Lanier and nearly a dozen other heads of area law enforcement agencies met on Thursday to release pictures of a whopping 245 riders that police want to identify.
"Enough is enough," Lanier said.
Lanier touted police seizures of some 400 bikes and ATVs, which are illegal to ride on the street in the District. She also said that about 100 arrests were made in the last year.
D.C.'s Attorney General, made it clear that the current law isn't cutting it and that the law needs to be strengthened.
Police efforts to fight the groups are hampered by a no-chase policy, which rules that a chase would be more dangerous than allowing the illegal riders to escape. Lanier has no plans to change the policy to allow officers to chase crews.
"We've seen it happen. They will go up on the sidewalks and they will strike pedestrians. We're not going to do that," Lanier explained.
The chief also seemed to disagree with the idea to give the riders a place to ride legally, she says that they already exist outside D.C. and she believes riders don't want to be on a dirt track. They want to be on the streets and a park won't keep them off of the streets.
The MPD is seeking the public's assistance in identifying the operators of these vehicles as well as any locations where the vehicles are being stored. A reward of $250 is being offered for information on each person identified.
To share a tip, contact the Command Information Center at (202) 727-9099 with your information. The tip must lead to a successful confiscation and identification of the driver/operator of the vehicle.